Weed burning apparatus



Nov. 23, 1948.

L" I i l H.4 E. WOOLERY WEED BURNING APPARATUS Filed Jan. v26, 1946 FIEE l l v )u j 40 y f' gwoon/fob HORACE .e-wooL/smf, oEcEAse-o MVM ULL/,4N wooLE/e ExEcurR/x @2M @MMM/47k Patented Nov. 23, "1948 WEED BURNING APPARATUS Horace E. Woolery, deceased, late of St. Paul,

Minn.; by Myra Lillian Woolery, executrix, St. Paul, Minn., assignor to Woolery Machine Company, Minneapolis, Minn., a corporation of Minnesota Application January 26, 1946, SerialNo. 643,714V

This invention relates generally to improvements in weed burning apparatus for use by railroads and others in burning weeds, clearing ditches and the like. p

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a light, `compact and sturdy frame assembly for'the component parts of such an apparatus, such as the engine, blower, fuel oil pump and burner head. Another object is to provide an improved mechanism for easily raising and lowering the burnerhead and for holding the head in any adjusted position. Still another object is to provide a weed burning assembly in a form which is applicable to many installations, such as upon awheeled railway car or a truck and which therefore has a wide range of uses on railways along canals and ditches, or for ice removal,` thawing frozen pipes or areas to be excavated, and many other uses,

The present application is a continuation in part from the copending application of Horace E. Woolery, Serial No. 486,973, for Weed burner, filed May 14, 1943 now Patentl 2,452,411, October 26, 1948.

These and other more detailedand specific objects will be disclosed in the course of the following specicatiomreferences being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is aside elevation of the apparatus.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged end and sectional View along the line 2-2 in Fig. 1

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary side View, partially broken away and in section particularly showing the brake 'for holding the burner head in adjusted positions.

Referring now more particularly and by reference characters to the drawing A designates gen- .6 Claims. (Cl. 12d-2.71.2)

erally a conventional burner assembly such as also disclosed in the cci-pending application hereinbefore referred to and including a blower B and engine C. The burner further includes a burner head or llame projector D at the end of a long burner tube E swingably connected at F to a tube G leading from the blower B. The arrangement is such that the head D may be swung upwardly or downwardly in an upright plane so as tovary the height of the llame with respect to the weeds or the surface of the ground.

For supporting and adjusting the foregoing mechanism the present invention provides a com-` pact, light and strong base or basic frame assembly made up of suitable steel shapes al1 riveted, welded or otherwise suitably connected to form a rigid structure. This frame comprises` base angles or sill members II) set upin parallel fairly closely spaced relation and rigidly joined by a baseplate II, (or series of suitably arranged narrow strips) upon which the blower B, engine C and other parts may be conveniently bolted. The frame further includes four upright corner posts I2 secured at lower ends to the ends of the sill members I0 and extending upwardly in converging relation in a transverse plane therefrom. The closely spaced upper ends of the corner posts I2 are thus readily attachable to opposite sides of a truss-like upper frame I3 as indicated at I4. Said frame I 3 is formed of upper and lower channels or channel-shaped bars I5 and I 6 between which is arranged and welded a truss strip I l, and the frame extends in the form of an Outrigger portion or boom I8 out beyond the corner posts I2 at one end of the assembly, over the .burner tube E. The upper and lower bars I5 and I6 converge in a vertical plane toward this end of the frame I3 and are joined by bearing plates I9 between which `is journaled a pulley or roller 20. At their opposite ends', toward which they also converge, the bars I5 and I 6 are joined by bearing plates 2I through `which is transversely journaled a shaft 22. `A sprocket chain 23 is attached at one end by a coupler link 24 to the burner head D and extends therefromover the roller 20 and back along the top of the frame I 3 and over asprocket 25 secured to the shaft 22.. vThe channel shape of the upper bar I5 provides a longitudinal upwardly opening guideway for the greater part of this length of the chain, as seen in Fig.`2 preventing lateral displacement of the chain. `From the sprocket 25 the chain 23 is doubled back beneath the frame I3 and passed over a pulley or roller 26 connected at 21 to the end of a tension spring 28, and the chain is thenagain doubled back or looped and its extremity nally fastened to a pin 29 which extends through and between theposts I2 below the shaft 22l The opposite end of the spring 28 is secured at 3U to the extremities of bracket bars 3| secured tothe posts I2 and extending therefrom out beneath` the boom portion I8 of the frame I3. These bars 3| are connected to the boom I8 by dependinghanger bars 32. l j

Theshaft 22 may be rotated by a hand wheel 33 secured to one end of the shaft, and to its other end there is fastened a grooved pulley 34 and cooperating with said pulley isy a bell-crank shaped brake lever 35 fulcrumed on one end of the aforesaid pin 29 and having two opposite handle ends or arms 31. One of such arms 3l has attached thereto a brake shoe 33 (Fig. 3) adapted toenter'the peripheral groove 39 in the pulley the shaft 22 against rotation. However; by-:graspeA ing eitherA arm 3l of the lever and pulling to the right, as viewed in the drawing, the brake shoe will be swung clear enough so that the shaft may" be turned by the hand wheel 33. Diagonal;- bracing to support the angular pull on the frame by weight of the burner headisf provided by brace bars ft2 connecting the posts I2and sills; i0? as seen in Fig. 1.

The operation of the burner mechanism will no doubt be apparent. The burner head may be raised and lowered as requiredfb'y releasing-thel brake as described and turning the hauled-wheeli 33 which will, of course, turn the sprocket 25 and so pay outl the chain and lower the head or draw in the. chain and'raise it. As the burner head is lowered the spring 28 is put under increasing tension, and the force thus stored will assist in raising the head so that little effort is required by the` operator. Theb'rake mechanismiwill also thus hold the burner head in any selected vertical position. Y

The narrow, rectangular flat base of the frame assembly makes it convenient to mount and support upon any desired'form of transport vehicle and it` will be evident that the entire structure is Very compact and strong.

It is understood that suitable rnodications'may` bemade in the structure as disclosed, provided such modifications comev within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Having now there-` fore fully illustrated and described the invention, what is claimed-to be new andfolesiredto` protect by Letters Patent is:

1. Ina weed burningapparatus'having an ex-A tending vertically swingable ame projector adjustable withfrespect to the forward endof a boom, means for 'raising and lowering the flame projector including a pulley at the outer end of the boom, a shaft at the-rear end of the boom, a sprocket on said shaft, a chain connected atone end to the flame projector and trained over said pulley and sprocket, a spring anchored at-one of its ends to the boom and having a movable con-` nection at its opposite end to the chain to counterbalance the weight of the-flame projector, and means `forro-tating the shaft and sprocket .to raise andlower the flame projector.

2. In a weed burning apparatus having an extending vertically swingable flame projector adjustable with respectV tothe forward end of a boorn,: means for raising and lowering. the flame projector including a pulley at the outer end of the boom, a shaft at the rear end of the. boom, a sprocket onY said shaft. achain connected at one end to the name projector and trained over said pulley and sprocket, a spring anchored at-one of its ends'to the boom and `having amovable conf nection at its opposite end to the chain to' counterbalance the weight of the ame projector, means for rotating the shaft and sprocket to raise and lower the flame projector, and brake means for releasably lockingthe'shaft to hold the. ame projector in any adjusted position.

3. in a weed burning apparatus. havingean eX- tending vertically vswingable flame projector adjustable with respect to theV forward end of a boom..` means for raising and loweringthe. flame projector including a pulley at the outer end of the boom, a shaft at the rear end of the boom, a sprocket on said shaft, a chain connected at one end to the flame projector and trained over said pulley and sprocket, a springv anchored at one of its end'sg-toI-the'boom andihaving a movable connection atits opposite endt'o the chain to counterbalance the weight of the flame projector, means for rotating the shaft and sprocket to raise and lower theiiame projector, and brake means for releasably locking the shaft to hold the flame lruojector in any adjusted position, said brake meansl comprising a peripherally grooved pulley secured to, the shaft; a pivoted brake lever having a brake shoe for engaging the pulley groove and spring means biasing the brake lever and to urge thef'brake shoe into-frictional engagement with the. pulley groove.

4. In a weed burning apparatus having an eX- tending vertically s wingable flame projector adinstableV with respect to the forwardendfof a bemin, meansA for raisingand'loweringthe flame projector including a pulley at the outer lend'of the boom. a shaft at the rear end of the boom, a spr'oclet'onsaid shaft, a chain connectedat one end tothe flame projector and trained'over. said pulley andfsprocket, a spring anchored .at one of itnsenjds tov thebcom and'having a movable connection; at its opposite end to the chain to counter-V balance. the weight of the flame projector, means for rotating@ thelshaft and sprocket to raise and lower the flame projector, brake means for releasablylocking' the shaft to hold the flame projector in any adjustedposition, said .brake means comprising a peripherally groovedfpulley secured to. thel shaft; a pivoted brake. lever having a brake 51h92 .for engaging thepulley groove` and spring means biasing the brakev lever and to urge the brake. shoer into, frictionalengagement with the pulley groove, the said brake lever being bell crankfsnaped'and having two handle ends.

5v. In la weed burning apparatus Yhaving an extending vertically swingable flame projector ad instable-V withrespect` tothe forward end of a boorn means for. raising and f lowering` the lflame prn'ector. including a pulley atl the'outer end-of the boom, a shaft at,l the rear end of the boom, a sprocket on Said shaft, a chain connected at oneend'tdthe namey projector and trained over said pulley and sproclceiza spring anchored at one` of its endsy to the .boom and having a movable connectionfat its opposite end to the chain to counterbalance the weight of the flame proj ector, means for rotating the shaft and sprocket to raise and lower? the@ flame projector, and means for g-uidingthev run ofithe' chain between the pulley and-sprocket.

65 Ina-weed burning apparatus having an extending vertically swingableI flame projector adjustable'lwithjrespect to the forward end of a lauern,y means for raising and lowering the flame projector including anexible element attached aty one end to the name projector adjacent its upper swingingend, rotatablemembers-for guiding the flexible element,4 one of said members being mounted on a xed axis'means to rotate said last named I member to actuate the flexible element, another of saidy rotatable members being springsupportedsfor. tensioni-ngtheffiexible element for counterbalancing the weight of the ameprojectori andnreleasablef-brake means acting on the rotatable". guide member on the fixed aXis for r.estrair'iirigfy lineall movement-of the =exib1e ele# ment and operating to hold the ame projector in any height-adjusted position.

6 UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 800,454 Lamb et al. Sept. 26, 1905 MYRA LILLIAN WOOLERY, 851,011 Lamb Apr. 23, 1907 Eecutr-ix of the Last Will and Testament of 5 877,515 McKeen et, a1 Jan, 28, 1908 Horace E. Woolery, Deceased. 951,034 Totman Mar. 1, 1910 1 955,425 ONeale Apr. 19, 1910 1REFERENCES CITED 1,290,232 Kimmel Jan. 7, 1919 The following references are of record in the 10 Ig Woolery Sept. 5, 1933 le of this patent: 1925 164 

